Unified desktop big brother application pools

• US 10,558,414 B2
• Filed: 11/03/2015
• Issued: 02/11/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Z124 LLC (Flexis)
• Original Assignee: Z124 LLC (Flexis)
• Inventors: Reeves, Paul E., Sirpal, Sanjiv, de Paz, Alexander, Gimpl, Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): Klicos, Nicholas
• Application Number:
  US14/931,670
• Publication Number:
  US 20160132279A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,561 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1616 with folding flat displays, e.g. laptop computers or notebooks having a clamshell configuration, with body parts pivoting to an open position around an axis parallel to the plane they define in closed position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1641 the display being formed by a plurality of foldable display components G06F1/1647 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1423 controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

Methods and devices for selectively presenting a user interface or “desktop” across two devices are provided. More particularly, a unified desktop is presented across a device and a computer system that comprise a unified system. The unified desktop acts as a single user interface that presents data and receives user interaction in a seamless environment that emulates a personal computing environment. To function within the personal computing environment, the unified desktop includes a process for docking and undocking the device with the computer system. The unified desktop presents a new user interface to allow access to functions of the unified desktop.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

providing a device comprising a first processor, a first memory, and a first screen;

providing a computer system comprising a second processor, a second memory, and a second screen;

docking the device to the computer system to form a unified system the unified system comprising the device and the computer system, wherein the device comprises a master of the unified system and the computer system comprises a subordinate of the unified system and wherein, upon docking, as the subordinate of the unified system, the computer system hides all user interface windows presented by the computer system that were previously open at the time of docking and the computer system pauses execution of applications that were previously executing on the computer system at the time of docking;

generating a unified desktop for the unified system, wherein the unified desktop is a user interface having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion includes at least a first user interface associated with and presented by the device and the second portion includes at least a second user interface associated with and presented by the computer system;

executing a first instance of a first application on the device, the first instance of the first application having an application display displayed at the first user interface, wherein the first instance of the first application is executed in a mobile computing environment;

receiving a first input, wherein the first input moves the application display of the first instance of the first application from the first user interface to the second user interface; and

in response to the first input;

determining that the first application is associated with a big brother application in a big brother application pool,

in response to the first application being associated with the big brother application, the device, in control of the unified system, sending a directive, in a first message, to the computer system to execute a big brother application associated with the first application on the computer system,

in response to receiving the directive, the computer system executing the big brother application associated with the first application on the computer system, wherein the first instance of the first application and the big brother application associated with the first application provide similar functionality, wherein the big brother application associated with the first application is executed in a personal computer environment, and wherein the computer system executes the big brother application associated with the first application on the computer system while the device executes the first instance of the first application,

after sending the directive, the device, in control of the unified system, sending a second message transferring information about the first instance of the first application to the big brother application associated with the first application to continue execution of the big brother application associated with the first application; and

displaying the application display at the second user interface.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the big brother application pool includes two or more big brother applications.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein each big brother application in the big brother application pool is associated with the first application or another application executed on the device.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising searching one or more items of metadata associated with the big brother application pool to determine if the first application is associated with the big brother application in the big brother application pool.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the one or more items of metadata indicate that the big brother application is associated with the first application.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the one or more items of metadata further includes an identifier for the big brother application and an identifier for the first application.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the metadata indicating the association is one of automatically created or manually input.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, in a search, the device searches the one or more items of metadata.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the device sends the first directive to execute the big brother application based on the search of the one or more items of metadata.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein a new association is created in the one or more items of metadata when a new application is installed on the device or the computer system.

11. A unified system, comprising:

a device comprising;

a first screen,

a first memory,

a first processor, and

a computing system comprising;

a second screen,

a second memory,

a second processor, wherein the device is docked with the computer system to form the unified system, wherein the device comprises a master of the unified system and the computer system comprises a subordinate of the unified system and wherein, upon docking, as the subordinate of the unified system, the computer system hides all user interface windows presented by the computer system that were previously open at the time of docking and the computer system pauses execution of applications that were previously executing on the computer system at the time of docking, and

wherein the unified system is configured to;

generate a unified desktop for the unified system, wherein the unified desktop is a user interface having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion includes at least a first user interface associated with the device and the second portion includes at least a second user interface associated with the computer system,

execute a first instance of a first application on the device, the first instance of the first application having an application display displayed at the first user interface, wherein the first instance of the first application is executed in a mobile computing environment,

receive a first input, wherein the first input moves the application display of the first instance of the first application from the first user interface to the second user interface, and

in response to the first input;

determine if the first application is associated with a big brother application in a big brother application pool,

if the first application is associated with the big brother application, send a directive, in a first message, to the computer system to execute a big brother application associated with the first application on the computer system,

in response to receiving the directive, execute the big brother application associated with the first application on the computer system, wherein the first instance of the first application and the big brother application associated with the first application provide similar functionality, wherein the big brother application associated with the first application is executed in a personal computer environment, and wherein the computer system executes the big brother application associated with the first application on the computer system while the device executes the first instance of the first application,

after sending the directive, send a second message transferring state information about the first instance of the first application to the big brother application associated with the first application to continue execution of the big brother application associated with the first application; and

display the application display at the second user interface.

12. The unified system of claim 11, wherein the big brother application pool includes two or more big brother applications, and wherein each big brother application in the big brother application pool is associated with the first application or another application executed on the device.

13. The unified system of claim 11, wherein the unified system is further configured to search one or more items of metadata associated with the big brother application pool to determine if the first application is associated with the big brother application in the big brother application pool, wherein the one or more items of metadata indicate that the big brother application is associated with the first application, and wherein the one or more items of metadata further includes an identifier for the big brother application and an identifier for the first application.

14. The unified system of claim 11, wherein, in a search, the device searches the one or more items of metadata, and wherein the device sends the first directive to execute the big brother application based on the search of the one or more items of metadata.

15. The unified system of claim 11, wherein a new association is created in the one or more items of metadata when a new application is installed on the device or the computer system.

16. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon computer-executable instructions, the computer executable instructions causing a processor to execute a method for providing a unified desktop, the computer-executable instructions comprising:

upon docking a device with a computer system, instructions to generate a unified desktop for a unified system, the unified system comprising the device and the computer system and wherein the device comprises a master of the unified system and the computer system comprises a subordinate of the unified system, wherein the unified desktop is a user interface having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion includes a first user interface associated with the device and the second portion includes at least a second user interface associated with the computer system, and wherein, upon docking, as the subordinate of the unified system, the computer system hides all user interface windows presented by the computer system that were previously open at the time of docking and the computer system pauses execution of applications that were previously executing on the computer system at the time of docking;

instructions to execute a first instance of a first application on the device, the first instance of the first application having an application display displayed at the first user interface, wherein the first instance of the first application is executed in a mobile computing environment;

instructions to receive a first input, wherein the first input moves the application display of the first instance of the first application from the first user interface to the second user interface; and

in response to the first input;

instructions to determine if the first application is associated with a big brother application in a big brother application pool,

if the first application is associated with the big brother application, send a directive, in a first message, to the computer system to execute a big brother application associated with the first application on the computer system,

in response to receipt of the directive, execute the big brother application associated with the first application on the computer system, wherein the first instance of the first application and the big brother application associated with the first application provide similar functionality, wherein the big brother application associated with the first application is executed in a personal computer environment, and wherein the computer system executes the big brother application associated with the first application on the computer system while the device executes the first instance of the first application,

after sending the directive, send a second message transferring state information about the first instance of the first application to the big brother application associated with the first application to continue execution of the big brother application associated with the first application, and

instructions to display the application display on the second user interface.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein the big brother application pool includes two or more big brother applications, and wherein each big brother application in the big brother application pool is associated with the first application or another application executed on the device.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 16, further comprising instructions to search one or more items of metadata associated with the big brother application pool to determine if the first application is associated with the big brother application in the big brother application pool, wherein the one or more items of metadata indicate that the big brother application is associated with the first application, and wherein the one or more items of metadata further includes an identifier for the big brother application and an identifier for the first application.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein the device searches the one or more items of metadata, and wherein the device sends the first directive to execute the big brother application based on the search of the one or more items of metadata.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein the one or more items of metadata includes an association of the big brother application with the first application, and wherein the one or more items of metadata further includes an identifier for the big brother application and an identifier for the first application.